Syracuse's Dion Waiters plays important minutes in second half, overtime

Dennis Nett / The Post-StandardSU's Dion Waiters takes a shot against Kemba Walker during the first half Friday.

New York – Dion Waiters came to Syracuse as an acclaimed guard capable of scoring in great bursts.

But like the majority of freshmen in college basketball, his first season in a Syracuse uniform has offered lessons in both humility and understanding.

Waiters played 29 minutes against Connecticut on Friday. He logged the majority of those minutes in the second half and overtime. And he showed a willingness to penetrate the lane and instead of instinctively attempting to score, to locate teammates with perhaps a better opportunity.

“I saw things,” he said, “that I didn’t see in the beginning of the year, that I kinda rushed. It’s just all about patience. Picking your spots.

“I’m not going to get every good shot,” Waiters said. “But what you could do is penetrate, the defense comes at you, then kick it out for a good shot. That’s what I was trying to do.”

Syracuse-UConn photo gallery Waiters was credited with three assists against Connecticut, but his perfect penetration and kick to Brandon Triche in the corner for a first-half ending 3-pointer was about as textbook as a guard can get. Triche missed the shot to deny Waiters the assist, but there was no discounting the thoughtfulness of that effort.

The one time Waiters did drive and convert, he flicked a finger-roll over the front rim. That shot crept the Orange to within 50-46. When he collected a pass from Rick Jackson at the top of the arc and drained that shot, SU was within 52-51.

“It was opening up. And I had good looks at the basket. And when I did, I took full advantage of it,” Waiters said. “And when I didn’t, I kicked it out to someone who had an even better shot.”

His statistics line on Friday included three rebounds, one blocked shot and one steal. Waiters, who is 6-foot-3, blocked the shot of Tyler Olander, who is 6-foot-9.

“Anything to win, man. I’m gonna give it my all. Play every game like it’s my last,” he said. “I was just out there, trying to be aggressive.”